SUSTAINABLE FUEL
Give customers a choice by exploring alternatives
The UK and Ireland Fuel Distributors Association Chief executive Ken Cronin
“I have been in the role as chief executive of UKIFDA for some three months and my overall impression about the home heating debate is that we must now start to recognise that the solution is that there isn’t one solution but many. I am concerned that the current debate is failing to engage some real home truths regarding the off- grid sector and, in particular, those homes that are heated by kerosene being regarded by some as the low hanging fruit, easiest to decarbonise, low regrets part of the equation.
The debate is also overlooking one important thing – we have to provide the consumer with a choice and significantly more information in order to be successful. Research shows consumers want a decarbonised solution which is as low cost (if not no cost) as possible, limited disruption and an end product that is familiar and provides them with a choice.
What is really required for heat decarbonisation to get as much public backing as possible, and to create a momentum of positivity, is to create some quick, easy wins that meet as much as possible the public requirements.
Off-grid homes heated by kerosene tend to be older, larger, less energy efficient and remote in terms of connection to the grid, whether of gas or robust connections to electricity. Therefore, the cost of retrofitting these homes and the installation of a heat pump starts at c£25,000 (as has been outlined recently in the Environmental Audit Committee report). I suspect many of the homes off-grid will cost significantly more. The change will be highly disruptive and will provide a level of heat service no better than what is currently available. But there will be some homes that a heat pump will be the right solution. The question is would any sensible person really start here?
I do believe there is at least one alternative to just installing heat pumps in rural homes. Both the Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the National Grid Future Energy Scenarios (FES) predict c900,000 of oil-heated homes will require some form of renewable fuel other than electricity to provide
home heating by 2050 to help meet the UK’s net zero commitment. This is often overlooked. I have been very impressed at the actions of the industry I represent in partnership with the 10,000 boiler technicians represented by OFTEC. Using our own resources, we have been working together on a renewable liquid heating fuel field trial in the UK. We are using Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) as the renewable fuel. This fuel has been independently verified and certified to be sustainable and derived from waste streams and the Building Research Establishment (BRE) has established on a CO2e per kWh basis a near 90% reduction in carbon emissions compared to traditional heating oil. To be clear this fuel just replaces kerosene. We have been extremely pleased with the results to date. From a technical view we have used the fuel in several different appliances with no issues. In addition, we
have also seen a fuel usage reduction compared to traditional heating oil following the conversion of a vaporising cooker. This is encouraging as it further benefits emissions reduction, running cost and signifies an attractive solution for those users who face kitchen refits if their appliances have to be replaced with electric cookers.
Perhaps our biggest surprise has been the level of interest shown by our customers in the areas where the trials have been publicised. This will be very useful moving forward as we know resistance (for whatever reason) to change is a potential barrier. The next step for us is to broaden the trial geographically and the range of appliances being tested, which we hope to start planning for immediately. The simple cost of conversion for many systems to a renewable fuel such as HVO will be approximately £500. Added efficiencies (potentially up to 25%) could be gained by also replacing boilers to the newest specifications at a cost of £3,000.
This is a simple replacement fuel which we believe will go a long way to providing the right decarbonisation solution, at the right cost and with the least amount of disruption, for a significant number of off-grid homes, creating a valuable easy no regrets win for both the consumer and the Government.
We are, however, under no illusion that for some homes currently heated by oil there will be other and better solutions.
An engineer makes the switch from oil supply to fossil-free HVO fuel
We are excited about the prospects of decarbonising the off-grid housing stock but there are some barriers to what we believe could be a very rapid roll out, given the advantages we have in terms of our local knowledge of the customer base and the proximity of our workforce to those customers. One major consideration is the need for Government to look at this solution in a technology neutral way and to look at the carbon lifecycle aspects as well as immediate carbon emissions. All eggs in one basket is not a great strategy and it provides little in the way of consumer choice.”
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